Touched: a Novel

by Jodi Lundgren

"Touched" renders the emotional and intellectual implosion experienced by Jade King, a young university student. This debut novel challenges the social stigma attached to such altered states and traces the effects of physical violation and psychic trauma. Lundgren encourages a critical examination of current psychiatric labels and treatments through a narrative that interweaves family history, legal texts, medical documents--and brave, phantasmagoric writing.

Genres: Fiction

170 pages, Paperback

First published December 10, 1999

About the author

Jodi Lundgren is a West coast fiction writer, dancer, and educator.

Reviews

[Meg Birch · Rating 5 out of 5]

So beautifully written. Is a "mental breakdown" just that - a breakdown, a malfunction - or is it the brain-and-body way of halting normal life to allow an old trauma to emerge and be healed?

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was reminded of this book recently after reading several books that seemed to be about drug addiction or mental illness and I wondered if maybe I was dislike the books because the topic made me uncomfortable. Then I remembered Jodi's book and the beautiful and poetic way she tells this story. In my humble opinion, she deserves the attention Michelle Tea gets.